Vernal Pools in Essex County

Vernal pools are ephemeral bodies of water that form in the spring and dry up by summer. There are no inlets or outlets to vernal pools, so they do not contain fish, which allows for a productive breeding ground for certain species who rely on them for their life cycles. 

In Massachusetts, vernal pools can be "certified" by experts and citizen scientists alike! Certification is done through observation, documentation, and submission through Massachusetts Natural Heritage & Endangered Species Program. Certified pools then receive certain legal protections to keep them safe from destruction by human activities. If destroyed, the species that rely on the vernal pools would have nowhere to mate or lay eggs, leading to those populations dying out.

Vernal pools can be certified through documentation of "obligate species" or documentation of "facultative species," when the former cannot be found.

Obligate species in a vernal pool are those that are completely dependent upon vernal pools: wood frog, spadefoot toad, certain salamanders (spotted, blue-spotted, Jefferson, and marbled), and fairy shrimp.

Scroll down to see a video of a Greenbelt staff member answering questions about vernal pools.

If obligate species cannot be documented, you can observe species that use vernal pools, but can also be found elsewhere. These include turtles, other frogs, snakes, and a number of insects and worms.

There are lots of inhabitants of vernal pools. Here are three obligate species:

A number of  Greenbelt's public properties  have certified and potential vernal pools. With parking right on the property, you can easily explore the wonder that vernal pools have to offer. Just remember to respect the habitat and stay on designated paths!

A staff member answers submitted questions about vernal pools.